I was disappointed at how good Aldi's £5.99 Tom Ford dupe perfume was - then it all changed

Over the years I’ve built up a tidy collection from the likes of Creed to Commodity, Jo Malone to Christian Dior, and from Burberry to Chanel. One of my favourites, which reminds me of summer holidays, is Tom Ford’s Soleil Blanc; which I use sparingly, because it’s £222 for 50ml.

So, when I heard that Aldi were dropping a load of perfume dupes on their middle aisles, well, I had to get there and find out what was on offer. And what I found really interested me.

There was a dupe of Victoria Beckham’s Portofino ‘97 (RRP £170) called Classic Italia, and a whole load of Tom Ford copies - including one called Solar Luxe, which was clearly a copy of Soleil Blanc. I got them both and couldn’t wait to get home and test them. I figured that if they were even close to the original fragrances, at £7.99 and £5.99 respectively, they had to be a bargain.

Solar Luxe/Soleil Blanc

Firstly, the Tom Ford dupe. The small square bottles are similar, the names similar, the prices massively different. But what about the smell? Well, actually I was annoyed to discover that at first spray, the dupe is extremely similar to the real thing. It had me cross with myself for spending a small fortune on Tom Ford. It wasn’t as strong as the original, nor as deep, but the bursts of sultry florals, coconuts, jasmine and orange were all there.

But, and it is a big but, it did not last. After only about 10 to 15 minutes on my skin, the dupe faded. It lost most of it’s distinctive profile and became just pleasantly sweet. On the other hand - literally - the original kept on going with its bold, but not overpoweringly sweet scent for hours. Even the next day, I could smell it on the coat I’d been wearing.

So, honestly, I was glad that the two products weren’t identical. But the price difference is astronomical. So, if you want something that smells great and the worst thing is that you have to keep respraying every so often, so be it. At £5.99, it’s a total bargain.

Classic Italia

And what of the Victoria Beckham dupe? Well, the real thing has been on my watchlist for some time, but I haven’t had the opportunity to actually smell it - so any comparison would be unfair. But what I can say about the Aldi version, which is sweeping social media - is that it does last longer than the Solar Luxe.

I personally think it’s quite a masculine smell, with tobacco notes and hints of amber and patchouli. It’s different from what I would usually go for, but in a good way. It’s packaged nicely in a stripey glass, but the transparent plastic squirty nozzle lets it down. But if it looks cheap, it’s because it is - £7.99. And again, that’s another bargain.